This demarcated South African wine ward (see SOUTH AFRICA) is part of the larger PAARL district, which is 35 to 40 miles northeast of Cape Town. Franschhoek lies about 15 miles east of the town of Paarl encircled by mountains in the Drakenstein Valley. Franschhoek, which translates to “French Corner,” was first settled by French Huguenots in the latter part of the seventeenth century. Although vines were planted then, it was not until recently that the wine era really began. This area’s climate is much cooler than the rest of the Paarl area, a drawback when the objective was to produce as large a crop as possible. Now, however, this cooler weather is attracting winegrowers looking to produce higher-quality grapes, a result of the longer growing season. SÉMILLON has historically been quite successful here. Other white VARIETIES that do well are CHARDONNAY and SAUVIGNON BLANC. In recent years, red varieties (CABERNET SAUVIGNON, MERLOT, Shiraz (SYRAH), and PINOT NOIR) have also shown promise.